The sun and the workout did not dehydrate me, but the diarrhoea did it well.
I was stuck inside the toilet for at least four times and I felt so weak finally.
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IKEA, Anchor Point and Volleyball
Kachua arrived at the college early from work and we went off to IKEA for dinner. The special meal for the day was fried dory fish. It was in fact quite normal and overpriced, but I liked the simplicity.
We walked around the furniture department on the second level and my sights were on the chairs and sofas, which were too big for my house. The entire place was freezing and I regretted changing into my shorts and slippers. The coldness almost made my toes cramp. We went to Anchor Point after that for a quick shopping before buying a hotdog bun back for Jingkun.
The games were quite nice. Eventually, we did not go out for supper. I was glad that Kachua was around because I would get a free lift. This time, we met David on the way to the gate and Kachua offered to give him a lift as well, dropping him at Pasir Panjang Road.
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Desktop has yet to Recover
My desktop is still enjoying the automatic restart madness. There is still no clue to what has happened except that the power supply might be spoilt. More testing has to be done.
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船到桥头自然直
I felt very lousy and suay (unlucky) in the early Thursday morning. I was very unprepared for the photoshoot, assuming everything was going to work as per normal.
Early in the morning, I could not find the latest camera held by my younger brother. As he opened his eyes, I asked him and his reply caught me in a daze for a moment. He had lent his camera to his good friend who had not returned him.
I packed up my old Olympus camera, together with the rechargeable batteries and charger, and left for work. The batteries were not charged for weeks and I had not used that camera for quite some time, which made me feel uneasy.
When I reached office, I went to find Kelvin immediately to borrow the DSLR camera but he told me it loaned by Cheng Hong. I could sense this alternative was not going to work out. I gave Cheng Hong a call and when he told me he was on course, I knew he was not going back to office, and thus I dropped the idea completely.
I set up the battery charger before going to Dorothy, who had been bringing her camera with her, but it was not my day after all.
The fact that I had forgotten to email my big boss, Diana, the day before to invite her down for the photoshoot made me feel worse. She had a good camera and was very experienced in phototaking, which could have assured a perfect work.
Diana was not around and I went to check with Wee Lian, and was happy enough to hear that she was coming back to the campus in the afternoon. I dropped the idea of emailing her since she would not have time to check her email during the meeting and that it would take hours to look through all her unread emails. I sent her a SMS and she replied me within minutes and told me that her camera was at home, but she was okay to go home to get it.
In the afternoon, my big boss went down to the “chocolate room” as promised to boost up my confidence of completing the job. The ingredients for the food items were quite big and it took the chefs time and efforts to shop, cook and bake, and to get them ready, whereas I was not supposed to make any mistake.
Eventually, another colleague from the culinary side came down with a more professional camera. I was very certain that Diana and my photos were good enough for the small web photos, but it was good for the two departments to have photos from a better camera to keep their work as portfolio.
I was very happy that my big boss would spend an hour there for me and her hobby in such a short notice. She even had to make her way home in the rainy day to get her camera. This friendship and mentorship could never happen in the outside working world. I was truly lucky.
There were too many preparations I could have done earlier to ensure that the photoshoot would be going smooth:
– Check with my younger brother earlier for the camera
– Get a newer camera for my personal use
– Check with Kelvin for the DSLR camera earlier
– Email my big boss to book her earlier
– Inform Dorothy to bring her camera along
– Charge my rechargeable batteries the night before
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To be Gone, Soon
I have been wondering for the past couple of months that would I still be able to keep in close contact with my current colleagues.
The big team of people who have the passion to build a better tomorrow for the society, spending infinite efforts to nurture the rebellious, are too great friends to lose. Apart from this, the helps, advices and smiles they offer to me for the past one year plus have carved too deeply into my heart that I would never forget.
It is the job that brings us closely together, understanding each other and enjoying all the togetherness. The professionalism and self-sacrificing are what truly have touched me. Apart from the seriousness, we get naughty and sarcastic.
Nevertheless, there are too many hidden restrictions and unfairness for me to endure, and someday, I have to be gone, soon.
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Cross Department Outing
Tuesday was the joint department lunch. It was good to have more people together, even though not everyone was really filling the atmosphere correctly.
Jingkun dropped Dorothy and I somewhere near the Pizza Hut restaurant at Clementi before he went for lunch with Mei Hoe. We had a filling lunch and the best thing was that we needed not care about footing the bill this time. The staffs were kept busy by us and it was all messy.
After lunch, we moved over to the K-Box opposite. Dorothy, Kevin and my initial plan was to stay for an hour, from 2pm to 3pm. Dorothy, however, got hyperactive again and dragged on. The remaining of us stayed until 5pm before we went back to the campus.
I accompanied Hirman to Orchard Shopping Centre. Since he was early for his dinner appointment, we took a walk at the Hereen.
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Thrice a Week
Last week was the rarest week of the year. I played volleyball thrice in a week alone. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday marked the history ever since I started working in my current job almost two years ago.
I did not play as good as in the past anymore.
On Thursday, I stayed alone inside the office until six plus. The effort to start setting up the poles and net boiled me up so much when one of the Pilipino guys started bringing his laptop out to pretend busy. The group of them was good players but certainly freeloaders. The game was full of ups and downs, but I was glad enough to amaze myself a couple of times. I walked home by myself.
On Saturday, I had my FYP lecture 2 before going home to change up and meeting Jingkun and Weitat at Vivocity. Dinner was settled at Long John Silver’s before we set off for Clementi. The game was boring at times and my performance was never consistent. We had dinner at Changi Airport Terminal 1 where Jingkun and I lost to the temptation of Popeye’s chicken. We ended our night at the Mustafa before Jingkun sent me home.
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It Refuses to End
It was only during last week when my Shi Fu patted my shoulder and I realized my pimples had not subsided for weeks. The scars seemed to remain forever.
The past few months of struggle between work and studies, inclusive of two modules and my final year project, almost killed me.
I had no vision of pulling through, as though I was on the journey to hell, on a non-return path. Little did I know the perseverance could save me at the expense of almost everything else.
It has not ended.
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Annoying and Troubling
The desktop’s problem is annoying and troubling.
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Another Good Lunch
Lunch with Dorothy and Weitat at West Coast Plaza’s Thai Express was great. Sometimes it was good to have a small group for meal probably – simple and peaceful.
The ambiance was good and the food was superb when being shared since it could have a reverse effect.
After lunch, we went to Nike Factory Outlet and I finally bought my arm punch at around $12.
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